Brilliant Bennekerry/Tinryland reach Leinster final
Scenes of joy at the final whistle
Brilliant Bennekerry/Tinryland turned in a superb second half display to beat home side St Patrick’s to reach the AIB Leinster LGFA Intermediate Football Championship final today.
Chris Townsend’s team had a nightmare start when conceding an early goal but ground down their opponents and by the final whistle were fully deserving winners.
They only scored one point in the opening 23 minutes but finished out the half really well.
After kicking her team’s first point, Elaine Ware also scored their second and Clíodhna Ní She then added a point which meant there was just that early goal between the teams at half time, 1-3 to 0-3 in favour of the home side.
The introduction of Lauren Dwyer brought even more life to an already lively attack but it was around the middle third where Bennekerry/Tinryland really won the game. Led by the likes of the tireless Ruth Bermingham, they forced countless turnovers around the middle of the pitch and on day when a misty rain fell throughout the game, when there was a dirty ball to be it was invariably a Bennekerry/Tinryland player who won it.
Dwyer was straight into the action and forced an early that Ní Shé converted with ease.
Leah Mullins teed up Marie Cranny in the 40th minute and shortly after, another foul on Dwyer left Ní Shé with a free to tie the game.
Bennekerry/Tinryland took the lead in the 43rd minute when Ní Shé worked a free short and it ended with Orla Woods curling over.
St Patrick’s had shown precious little in the way of attacking intent through the third quarter but they got back on level terms in the 52nd minute through Grace Treanor.
But Bennekerry/Tinryland made sure it was going to be their day. Dwyer, who earlier forced a brilliant save out of Rebecca Lambe Egan won another free which this was curled over the left foot of Woods.
Then Maeve O’Neill, into the same end where she scored a dramatic winning goal for Carlow against Fermanagh in the NFL Division 4 semi-final earlier in the year, fired over to give Bennekerry/Tinryland a two point leading in the 58th minute.
There might have been some anxious moments when Kate Flood halved that lead from a free in injury time but instead, from another huge kickout by goalkeeper and captain Shannen Cotter, Ní Shé picked up the ball in the middle of the field and drove forward before fisting over the match clinching score.
It was a fitting way to round off a superb win.
Bennekerry/Tinryland now play Dee Rangers of Meath in the final in Kinnegad next Saturday.
Shannen Cotter; Clodagh Mahon, Leanne Corcoran, Leah Mullins, Ruth Bermingham, Nuala Mohan, Marie Cranny 0-1; Liz Lowry, Elaine Ware 0-2; Aoibhín Web, Clíodhna Ní Shé 0-4 (3fs), Maeve O’Neill 0-1, Orla Woods 0-2 (1f), Sarah Nolan, Sinead Hayden. Subs: Lauren Dwyer for O’Neill, h/t; Maeve O’Neill for Nolan, 49
